Boris III of Bulgaria

Boris III of Bulgaria (30 January 1894-28 August 1943) was Tsar of Bulgaria from 3 October 1918 to 28 August 1943, succeeding Ferdinand I of Bulgaria and preceding Simeon II of Bulgaria. Boris was one of Europe's last great kings, as he established a royal dictatorship in 1935 and played a central role in directing his country at the time of World War II. Boris reluctantly sided with Nazi Germany with the goal of maintaining Bulgaria's independence, but he refused to send troops to fight the Soviet Union and also refused to deport Jews to Nazi concentration camps.

Biography
Boris was born in Sofia, Tsardom of Bulgaria on 30 January 1894, the son of Ferdinand I of Bulgaria and Princess Marie Louise of Bourbon-Parma. As crown prince, he commanded Bulgarian troops on the Macedonian front in World War I, but he was defeated by Louis Franchet d'Esperey's Allied troops. He became king on the abdication of King Ferdinand on 3 October 1918, at a time when the monarchy was weak. Boris kept a low profile and only gradually increased his powers as various radical dictatorships failed one after the other. By 1934, he had come to control public affairs, and he instituted a royal dictatorship in 1935. Boris tried to keep out of the growing European conflict despite his country's military and economic dependence on Nazi Germany and his original sympathies with Mussolini. Faced with military submission to Germany or joining the war on Germany's side, Boris chose the latter, and Bulgaria joined the Axis Powers in 1941 during World War II. However, Boris did not send his troops to fight the Soviet Union, nor did he allow the deportation of Jews to Nazi concentration camps. The sudden death of Boris left his country directionless for the next year, and it facilitated the communist takeover that same year.